I'm working on my new system for college, and I had decided to go with the XFX 7900GT with the core clocked at 470MHz, but many of the reviews on newegg claim that it's unreliable, runs hot, and runs loud. Several people had to RMA because of the artifacting, tearing, system crashes, etc. How reliable are reviews from vendor websites on things like this? Is it safe to assume the "silent majority" all got cards that work fine, and only the ones that have something to complain about are the ones that review?
Some of the reviewers claim this is caused by the nVidia 7900 design, rather than the manufacturer, but nVidia wouldn't design a card that is just plain broken, would they?
I guess in all my rambling what I'm asking is, does buying a factory overclocked card result in more instability than getting a normally clocked card? I have the option of getting an MSI card at normal speed (450MHz) for the same price, but that doesn't seem logical when I can get one that's around 5% faster.
If anyone has any insight to offer, I'd appreciate a nudge in the right direction. Thanks
Some of the reviewers claim this is caused by the nVidia 7900 design, rather than the manufacturer, but nVidia wouldn't design a card that is just plain broken, would they?
I guess in all my rambling what I'm asking is, does buying a factory overclocked card result in more instability than getting a normally clocked card? I have the option of getting an MSI card at normal speed (450MHz) for the same price, but that doesn't seem logical when I can get one that's around 5% faster.
If anyone has any insight to offer, I'd appreciate a nudge in the right direction. Thanks